Strap tightener and fastener



' April 14, 1964 R. E. HALvARsoN 3,128,516

STRAP TIGHTENER AND FASTENER Filed May 22, 1961 INVENTOR Z RALPH E. HALVARSON 33 ATTORNEYS United States Patent Oiilice 3,128,516 Patented Apr. 14, 1964 3,128,516 STRAP TIGHTENER AND FASTENER Raiph E. Halt/arson, 3747 N. 36th St., Milwaukee, Wis. Filed May 22, 1961, Ser. No. 111,742 4 Claims. (Cl. 24-68) This invention appertains to strap tighteners and fasteners and more particularly to strap tighteners and fasteners of the type utilized for holding articles firmly in place on a support, such as refrigerators and the like on dollies, boats on trailers and car tops etc. and is an improvement on my prior tighteners as shown in my Patents No. 2,809,008 issued October 8, 1957 and No. 2,830,783 issued April l5, 1958.

In strap tighteners or slack take-ups, the body portion of the tightener is connected to one side of a support (trailer, car top, dolly or the like) and the strap is detachably secured at its outer end to the opposite side of the support and the strap is initially adjusted after which the inner end of the strapis secured to the body portion of the tightener. An intermediate portion of the strap is trained over the take-up plate or throw lever pivotally carried by the body portion of the tightener. With the take-up or throw lever moved down over the body portion, slack in the strap is taken up and the strap is tightened against the article being held on the support. With the lever swung away from the body portion, the strap is loosened and the outer end thereof can be detached from the support to release the article.

It often becomes necessary to adjust the tightener on the strap to compensate for stretch in the strap and to adjust the length of the strap for different appliances. Difficulty is had in dismantling the strap from the tightener and resecuring the strap to the tightener. In some instances, it has been proposed to use additional buckles for adjusting the active length of the strap.

It is, therefore, one of the primary objects of my invention to provide a simple and etlcient means for adjustably connecting the tightener on the strap, whereby the tightener can be quickly and conveniently moved to any desired position along the strap and iirmly connected therewith, without the necessity of dismantling the tightener or cutting rivets or the like.

Another salient object of my invention is to provide an eccentric or cam roller having a roughened or serrated surface rotatably carried directly by the body of the tightener, so that the strap can be passed between the roller and the body, and whereby pull on the strap will tend to rotate the roller in the direction of its high point or throw, for rmly binding the strap on the tightener in a selected and desired position and so that the stronger the pull on the strap the greater the bind on the strap by the roller.

A further important object of my invention is to simplify the construction of the body and the throw lever of the tightener and to arrange these parts relative to one another so that the strap can be properly associated with the throw lever, and the body of the tightener and the binding cam roller, the construction being such that when the lever is swung down over the body for finally adjusting the strap the tension of the strap will tend to swing and hold the lever down in its tightened position.

A still further object of my invention is the provision of a handle located exteriorly of the body of the tightener for manually actuating the roller to release the roller from the strap for permitting adjustment of the tightener on the strap.

A still further important object of my invention is the provision of a simple, efficient safety catch for positively holding the throw lever down in its adjusted position against accidental displacement, the shaft of the handle being formed to act as the keeper for the catch, so that the necessity of additional keepers on the body is eliminated.

With these and other objects in View, the invention consists in the novel construction, arrangement and formation of parts, as will be hereinafter more specifically described and claimed and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which drawings,

FIGURE l is a fragmentary end elevational view showing myl improved tightener in one of its applications, namely, for holding a boat on top of an automobile, the strap being shown in its tightened gripping position in full lines and in its released loose position in dotted lines;

FIGURE 2 is a side elevational view of the tightener, the throw lever being in its lowered strap tightening position, the view also illustrating the safety catch;

FIGURE 3 is a front elevational View of the tightener with parts broken away and in section to illustrate structural detail;

FIGURE 4 is a central longitudinal sectional View through the tightener, the throw lever being shown in its lower strap tightening position in full lines and in its raised strap loosening position in dotted lines;

FIGURE 5 is a transverse sectional view through the tightener taken on the line 5--5 of FIGURE 3 and FIGURE 4, the View illustrating more particularly the eccentric or cam roller and the safety catch, and

FIGURE 6 is a detail fragmentary longitudinal sectional view through the tightener, the view showing the eccentric or cam roller in its strap released position.

Referring to the drawings in detail, wherein similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, the letter S generaly indicates my improved strap fastener and tightener and in FIGURE 1 of the drawings, I have illustrated one use of my strap tightener and fastener. In this figure, I have shown the strap tightener and fastener S utilized on a boat carrier, but it is to be understood that the tightener and fastener can be utilized for any purpose where a strap tightener is needed, such as on dollies for holding refrigerators and other appliances in place during carrying operations.

Again referring to FIGURE 1, I have shown the fastener and tightener connected with a strap 10, which is passed over a boat B'. The boat B is placed upside down on a carrier 11 secured to the roof of an automobile A. As illustrated, the carrier 11 includes transversely extending bars 12. One end of the strap 10 carries a loop 13, which is passed over one end of a bar 12. The other end of the strap is carried in a novel fashion by the tightener S, as will be later brought out. It is to be noted, however, that the tightener S carries a loop or bracket 14 which is passed over the opposite end of the bar 12. When the strap is in a finally adjusted,

tightened position the loops 13 and 14 are held against displacement on the bar and the strap is held down tight against the boat. When the tightener is in its loosened position, as shown in FIGURE l, the loops 13 and 14 can be removed from the bar 12.

Referring more particularly to my strap tightener and fastener, the same includes a main body portion 15 and a throw lever 16, and these parts can be fabricated in any desired manner, but preferably from steel stampings.

T he body portion 15 includes a rear wall 17 and spaced parallel side walls 18. Thus the body is of a substantially U-shape in cross-section. The side walls 18, can be tapered downwardly toward the lower end of the body for a purpose, which will also later appear. The side walls 18 adjacent to but spaced from their upper ends, are connected by a transversely extending cross-pin or rod 19. The cross-pin or rod 19 functions to brace the side walls and as a support for an intermediate portion of the strap 1d, as will later appear. The side walls 1S adjacent to but spaced from their lower ends rotatably receive a shaft to which is rigidly secured an eccentric or cam roller 21. The outer face of the cam roller is roughened or serrated, as at 22, for a purpose which will also later appear. One end of the shaft Ztl is bent to provide an operating handle 23. The cam roller is located a predetermined distance from the rear wall 17, for a purpose which will later appear. As clearly shown in FIGURES 2 to 6, inclusive, the bracket or loop 14 is rigidly secured by fastening elements 24 to the rear wall 17 adjacent to its lower end.

The throw or take-up lever 16 is also of a U-shape in cross-section and hence includes an outer wall and spaced parallel side walls 26. The side walls 26 also taper downwardly and inwardly toward the lower end of the wall 25 and the purpose of this will be later brought out. The side walls 26 of the lever 16 are pivotally connected to the side walls 18 of the body 17, adjacent to the upper ends of these walls by means of pivot pins or rivets 27. Thus, the throw lever 16 is mounted for swinging movement on the body and for movement down over the body or to a raised position away from the body. It is to be noted that the cross-pin 19 is located inwardly of the pivots 27. The outer wall 25 terminates decidedly short of the upper end of the lever and this wall 25 directly below its upper edge is provided with a strap receiving slot 28. The material from the slot is preferably folded back against the wall 25 to form a smooth surface against which the strap bears.

From the description so far, it can be seen that in use of my improved tightener, one end of the strap is secured to one end of the support or carrier, and the loop 14 is connected to the other end of the support or carrier, and the strap is, of course, passed over the article being held, such as the boat B. The strap is threaded through the slot 2S into the tightener and over the cross-pin or rod 19 and down between the rear wall 17 of the body portion of the tightener, and the eccentric or cam roller 21. It is to be understood that normally and initially, the strap is adjusted to embrace a certain size article to be carried and in the present instance, the eccentric or cam roller 21 is rotated by its handle 23 to move the high point or throw of the roller away from the rear wall 17, and the strap is pulled and adjusted to the desired initial position, after which the eccentric or cam roller is turned so that the high point or throw will be moved into engagement with the strap and near the rear wall 17. Any pull on the strap will tend to move the carn roller closer to the rear wall 17, and hence bring about firm binding of the strap on the body. This initial adjustment takes place when the throw or take-up lever is in its raised position away from the body, and obviously, the strap is tightened and any slack is taken up by downward, inward movement of the throw lever against the body portion. The inclination of the side walls of the body and throw lever permits the lever to be moved to a complete swung in position adjacent to the rear wall 17. Obviously, the wall 26 of the throw lever adjacent to the handle 23 for the cam roller 21 is slotted, as at 26', to permit the side wall to ride past the shaft 20. It is to be noted that tension or pull on the strap functions to pull the lever downwardly and inwardly to its closed position. This is brought about due to the location of the cross-pin 19 relative to the pivots 27.

When the lever is in its raised thrown back position the strap is loosened and one or both of the loops 13 and 14 can be removed from the bar 12.

In order to insure the holding down of the throw lever in its strap tightening position against accidental movement, I provide a safety catch or latch 29. This safety catch or latch includes a side plate 3i?, which is pivotally secured to the wall 26 of the throw lever 16. The inner end of the catch is provided with a slot 31 constituting a hook and this hook is adapted to extend over the shaft 2t) of the cam roller, and thus latch the lever to the body. The side plate 3? of the latch is pivotally connected, as at 32, to the throw lever and the outer end of the plate is inturned to provide a finger manipulating piece 33.

The latch is normally held in a lowered position for engagement with the shaft by means of a spring 34 which is interposed between the ingerpiece 33 and the wall 25 of the throw lever. The outer end of the plate adjacent to the latch slot 31 is provided with a curved nose 35 so that when the lever is swung to its lowered position the nose will engage the shaft 20 and be automatically raised over the shaft against tension of the spring 34.

When the slot 31 reaches the shaft then the spring will function to lower the latch plate and hook over the shaft.

Various changes in details may be made without departing from the spirit or the scope of this invention, but what l claim as new is:

l. A fastener and tightener for straps comprising a body portion adapted to be secured at one end to a support, a throw and take-up lever pivotally secured at one end to the opposite end of said body, said throw lever and said body portion being of a U-shape in cross-section and each including outer walls and side walls, a cross-pin carried by the side walls of the body inward of but adjacent to the pivot point of the lever, and said lever having a slot therein at a point intermediate its ends adapted to receive the strap being tightened and said cross-pin being adapted to receive an intermediate portion of the strap, means for detachably securing the strap inward of the cross-pin to the body including a shaft rotatably carried by the side walls of the body, a carn roller having a high clamping point rigidly secured to the shaft adjacent to the outer wall of the body, the strap being adapted to be passed between the cam roller and the outer Wall of the body so that the high point of the cam roller will bind the strap against said outer wall, one end of said shaft being extended beyond a side wall of the body and having an operating handle thereon, means for latching the lever in a lowered position over the body including a latch plate pivotally carried by one side wall of the lever having a slot for receiving the extended end of the shaft with the shaft functioning as a keeper for the safety latch.

2. A fastener and tightener for straps comprising a body portion having an outer wall, the body portion being adapted to be connected at one end to a support, a throw and take up lever pivotally secured at one end to the other end of the body and swingable to a lowered position over the body and to a raised position away from the body, a cross-pin carried by the body and disposed inward of but adjacent to the pivot point of the lever and over which an intermediate portion of the strap to be tightened is passed to form a loop, means detachably securing the strap to the body at a point inward of said cross-pin and the loop, including a movable member carried by said body inwardly of said cross-pin having a holding position to secure said strap to said body and an open position to release said strap, said lever having a slot therein at a point intermediate its ends and inward of the pivot point of the lever when the lever is swung over the body toward said outer wall, the slot being adapted to receive the looped portion of the strap, the lever in its lowered position over said body and the outer wall functioning to tighten the strap and in its raised position away from the body to loosen said strap.

3. A fastener and tightener for straps as defined in claim 2, and means for holding the throw and take up lever in its lowered position over the body against accidental movement.

4. A fastener and tightener for straps as delined in 5 claim 2, and a safety catch for releasably securing the lever in its lowered position to the body against accidental swinging movement.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Robinson Sept. 12, 1922 6 Boeuf Ian. 6, 1942 Gilmore July 21, 1942 George Feb. 13, 1945 Windsor Dec. 18, 1945 Davis June 14, 1955 Arnold Sept. 23, 1958 Elsner May 2, 1961 Davis Aug. 29, 1961 

1. A FASTENER AND TIGHTENER FOR STRAPS COMPRISING A BODY PORTION ADAPTED TO BE SECURED AT ONE END TO A SUPPORT, A THROW AND TAKE-UP LEVER PIVOTALLY SECURED AT ONE END TO THE OPPOSITE END OF SAID BODY, SAID THROW LEVER AND SAID BODY PORTION BEING OF A U-SHAPE IN CROSS-SECTION AND EACH INCLUDING OUTER WALLS AND SIDE WALLS, A CROSS-PIN CARRIED BY THE SIDE WALLS OF THE BODY INWARD OF BUT ADJACENT TO THE PIVOT POINT OF THE LEVER, AND SAID LEVER HAVING A SLOT THEREIN AT A POINT INTERMEDIATE ITS ENDS ADAPTED TO RECEIVE THE STRAP BEING TIGHTENED AND SAID CROSS-PIN BEING ADAPTED TO RECEIVE AN INTERMEDIATE PORTION OF THE STRAP, MEANS FOR DETACHABLY SECURING THE STRAP INWARD OF THE CROSS-PIN TO THE BODY INCLUDING A SHAFT ROTATABLY CARRIED BY THE SIDE WALLS OF THE BODY, A CAM ROLLER HAVING A HIGH CLAMPING POINT RIGIDLY SECURED TO THE SHAFT ADJACENT TO THE OUTER WALL OF THE BODY, THE STRAP BEING ADAPTED TO BE PASSED BETWEEN THE CAM ROLLER AND THE OUTER WALL OF THE BODY SO THAT THE HIGH POINT OF THE CAM ROLLER WILL BIND THE STRAP AGAINST SAID OUTER WALL, ONE END OF SAID SHAFT BEING EXTENDED BEYOND A SIDE WALL OF THE BODY AND HAVING AN OPERATING HANDLE THEREON, MEANS FOR LATCHING THE LEVER IN A LOWERED POSITION OVER THE BODY INCLUDING A LATCH PLATE PIVOTALLY CARRIED BY ONE SIDE WALL OF THE LEVER HAVING A SLOT FOR RECEIVING THE EXTENDED END OF THE SHAFT WITH THE SHAFT FUNCTIONING AS A KEEPER FOR THE SAFETY LATCH. 